Corpay Sells PayByPhone to Lightyear Capital in Strategic Portfolio Realignment

Corpay, Inc. (NYSE: CPAY) — a global corporate payments company — has agreed to sell PayByPhone, its mobile parking payments business, to New York–based private equity firm Lightyear Capital in a move that aligns with Corpay’s strategy to streamline its operations and sharpen its focus on core corporate payments services.

The definitive agreement was announced on February 4, 2026, with the transaction expected to close in the second quarter of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. Corpay said the sale is not expected to have a material impact on its 2026 Cash EPS outlook.

PayByPhone — a globally recognised provider of mobile parking payment solutions — will transition into Lightyear Capital’s portfolio, where it is expected to continue as an independent business under new ownership.

A Mobile Payments Pioneer Finds a New Home

Originally founded as a digital solution to make parking payments simpler and more seamless, PayByPhone has grown into one of the world’s leading mobile parking payments platforms. Its technology allows drivers to pay for parking via smartphone or other connected devices, eliminating the need for coins, tickets or kiosk visits.

Today, PayByPhone serves more than 1,300 parking operators around the world and counts millions of users across key markets including the United Kingdom, North America, France, Germany and Switzerland.

Under Lightyear’s ownership, PayByPhone will continue its mission to simplify parking and mobility payments. Lightyear Capital has indicated that it plans to support innovation and long-term growth in the business, positioning it to expand beyond traditional parking payments and into wider mobility payments services.

“PayByPhone marks Lightyear’s 18th carve-out transaction and eighth investment in vertical software and payments,” said Mark Vassallo, Managing Partner at Lightyear. “We are genuinely excited about our acquisition of PayByPhone given its reputation as one of the leading global providers of digital parking payments and mission-critical parking management software.”

Strategic Rationale: Corpay’s Focus on Corporate Payments

For Corpay — which describes itself as “the corporate payments company” — the sale of PayByPhone reflects a broader strategic initiative to simplify its portfolio and accelerate its pivot toward enterprise-grade corporate payment solutions.

In recent years, Corpay has built a comprehensive suite of corporate payments products, including:

• Corporate cards: business, fleet and virtual cards for commercial expense management
• Accounts payable modernisation: invoice and payments automation
• Cross-border payment solutions: supporting global transaction needs
• Lodging and travel-related payments: offerings tailored to corporate travel spend

The divestiture of PayByPhone, which falls outside this core corporate focus, is intended to allow Corpay to concentrate its resources and investments on expanding these payment-centric capabilities. CEO Ron Clarke has emphasised that the company expects PayByPhone to thrive with Lightyear’s support and that the sale will help sharpen Corpay’s competitive positioning in the corporate segment.

Why This Matters for the Payments Industry

The Corpay–PayByPhone transaction underscores several broader trends in the payments and fintech sectors:

1. Strategic Portfolio Pruning

Large payment platforms are increasingly rationalising non-core assets to focus on high-growth enterprise segments such as corporate cards, cross-border payments, and embedded payment services. Corpay’s divestiture is a current example of this shift.

2. Private Equity Interest in Vertical Software and Mobility Tech

Lightyear Capital’s acquisition fits a broader pattern of private equity investment in fintech and vertical software businesses with established recurring revenue — especially those at the intersection of payments and mobility services.

3. Mobility Payments as a Stand-Alone Market

Mobile parking payments — once a niche use case — have become embedded into broader smart city, mobility and logistics ecosystems. Investors see growth potential beyond simple parking as consumers increasingly adopt digital payment solutions for transportation and urban services.

Impact on Corpay’s Business and Financial Outlook

Corpay has made clear that the sale is not expected to materially affect its 2026 Cash EPS outlook, providing investors with some assurance that the divestiture is a strategic reshaping rather than a reactive move.

Financial details of the transaction have not been publicly disclosed, and Corpay plans to discuss additional perspectives on the sale and its broader business outlook during its upcoming earnings call.

Analysts note that while the PayByPhone segment historically contributed revenue under Corpay’s vehicle payments division, it was less aligned with the company’s growing emphasis on corporate-centric payment solutions — a segment that has shown robust year-over-year growth and profitability.

Lightyear Capital’s Plans for PayByPhone

Founded more than 25 years ago, Lightyear Capital is a New York–based private equity firm with over US$7 billion in assets under management, specialising in financial services, technology, healthcare and business services.

PayByPhone fits within Lightyear’s investment thesis of partnering with high-quality management teams and growth-oriented companies. The firm’s executive partners have publicly stated a focus on product innovation, market expansion and strategic investment to support PayByPhone’s evolution beyond parking payments into broader mobility and urban payment use cases.

Jonny Combe, President and CEO of PayByPhone, commented that the transition to Lightyear’s ownership represents an exciting opportunity for the business to pursue its long-term strategy, especially in expanding digital mobility payment innovations.

What This Means for Customers and Users

Under the terms of the agreement, PayByPhone will continue operating as an independent business throughout the ownership transition, with minimal disruption anticipated for users and operator partners.

Customers — which include municipalities, parking operators and private enterprises — can expect continuity in service delivery and ongoing support during the sign-to-close period, as well as investment in technology to improve and expand offerings over time.

For drivers and end users, the app experience — already downloaded by tens of millions worldwide — is expected to remain intact, with potential enhancements as PayByPhone scales into new payment and mobility solutions.

Looking Ahead

The PayByPhone sale to Lightyear Capital marks a meaningful moment for Corpay’s strategic evolution and reflects broader trends in payments infrastructure realignment. As the company turns further toward enterprise payment solutions, the transaction creates space for focused innovation and investment in corporate payment automation and service solutions.

Meanwhile, Lightyear Capital’s acquisition positions PayByPhone for an independent growth trajectory that could see the platform expand into mobility payments, smart city integrations and next-generation payment experiences — potentially transforming how urban drivers interact with digital payment systems beyond traditional parking transactions.

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